Managed Hardware Personal Servers

A managed hardware personal server is a physical computer system
that you keep on your premises. We help you to set it up
and will be there if you need more help with it down the track, but
we don't manage it on a day-to-day basis for you as we do with
our Managed Cloud Personal Server.

Benefits of hardware-based solutions include
higher storage capacities; lower running costs (if you don't count
the time you spend managing it); higher privacy; bandwidth efficiencies;
and perhaps more peace of mind
that it's harder (but not impossible) for governments to get your
data.

For a limited time as an introductory offer we are
providing managed hardware solutions for free. If you'd like
us to help you setup your hardware server
get in touch
and we'll help you out!

Higher Storage Capacity

With a hardware solution it's easy to add a bunch of hard-drives to
get terrabytes of storage on your personal server. If you host in the
cloud then storage costs are considerably higher.

Lower Running Costs

There are a bunch of hidden costs with a hardware solution. You have
to pay for electricity to run it, electricity to cool it, and extra
for the bandwidth it uses on your home Internet connection. That's to
say nothing of the time you will have to spend maintaining it.
But when you add it all up it's probably still a little bit cheaper
to operate a physical server.

Higher Privacy

Privacy is improved when you run a hardware personal server because
when it's just you using your server and you are at home then no-one
can monitor your use. If you use a cloud-based solution then it's
possible for governments and telcos to intercept your meta-data
and while they might not know what you're doing on your server they
can tell that you're using it. With a hardware server on your
premises when you're using it from home no-one will know (unless
they're monitoring a wireless network that you are using).
Of course if you're not at home but are on the road and are using
your hardware personal server then you can be monitored again.

Bandwidth Efficiencies

All the time you spend using your hardware-based personal server
from home saves you bandwidth. If your server is hosted in the cloud
then no matter when you're accessing it from you have to pay for
bandwidth. But if you're using your personal server from home the
server is on the same network (your LAN) and thus that bandwidth is
free. And who doesn't love free bandwidth? :)

Peace of Mind

You might rest easy knowing that if you run your hardware personal
server from home it's harder for government spies to access your data.
That's probably true, but not by much. If the government wants your
data they will be able to get it regardless of whether or not it is
on a computer on your home network. So let's just hope the
government isn't particularly interested in what you are doing with
your computers!

Need to Buy Hardware?

If you're planning to run your own server but don't have your hardware
yet we can recommend that you buy a Lenovo ThinkServer from Amazon.com.
Make sure you order one with a hard-drive! We recommend the i3-4130 + 8GB RAM + 1TB HDD
model, but you might like to buy one with more capacity.

Want to Get Started?

If you'd like us to help you setup your own hardware server for free
then get in touch! Perhaps you're not sure if a hardware solution is best for you and
if so you might like to consider our Managed Cloud Personal Server instead. If you're not ready to buy and
wondering what to do next you might like to read this article
about how personal servers promote and protect your privacy on the
Internet: Personal Server Privacy.

Types of Personal Server

THIS INFORMATION IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND ALL RISK IS WITH YOU. WE MAKE NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO ANY MATTER WHATSOEVER. IN NO EVENT SHALL WE OR OUR SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY OTHER PARTY FOR ANY INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES.